Device for treatment of bone fractures



July 24, 1951 L. 'r. WRIGHT 2,561,550

DEVICE FOR TREATMENT OF BONE FRACTURES Filed May 28, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR uis T Mgr/1t ATTORNEY Patented July 24, 1951 DEVICE FOR TREATMENT OF BONE FRACTURES Louis T. Wright, New York, N. Y., assignor, to Harlem Hospital Surgical Research Fund, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application May 28, 1948, Serial No. 29,698 Claims. (01. 128-432) This invention relates to devices for the treatment of supracondylar and T-fractures of the lower end of the femur and T-fractures of the upper end of the tibia. An object of this invention is to provide a high- 1y improved blade plate, which may be used in the treatment of supracondylar and T-fractures of the lower end of the femur and T-fractures of the upper end of the tibia involving the knee joint, which blade plate comprises a blade, which may be driven into the bone and a plate inte grally formed with the blade and forming an acute angle therewith so as to approximate the angle of the femur or tibia in the region of the knee joint.

Q A further object of this invention is to provide adevice of the character described, in which the plate is of transversely curved cross-section to fit the outer side of the bone structure and is formed with staggered openings to receive screws, which are screwed into the bone for holding the device in place during the healing of the fracture.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide a device ofthe character described, which is formed at the junction of the blade and the plate with a drive heel or lip, which may be hammered to drive the blade into the condyles of the femur or the tuberosities of the tibia. 1

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a device of the character described, in which the blade decreases in thickness, as well as in width from the junction of the blade with the plate toward the outer end of the blade.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a device of the character described, in which the blade is of concave cross-section so as to aid in preventing rocking of the device when attached to the bone structure.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and inpart hereinafter pointed out.v The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts, which will be exemplified in theconstruction hereinafter described,

and of which the scope of invention will be indi-.

cated in the following claims:

Inthe drawings in which are shown various illustrative embodiments of this invention:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a knee joint wherein the femur has a T-fracture at itslower end and showing a device embodying the invention, in

position for treatment of the fracture;

i Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the structure shown in Fig. l; i

Fig. 3 is a front view of the upper end of a tibia and showing a device embodying the invention in position for treatment of a T-fracture;.

Fig. 4 is a rear View of the structure shown in Fig. 3;

, Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a blade plate embodying the invention used for the treatment of- Fig. 9 is a front view of the device embodying the invention and illustrating another modificaa tion, and

Fig. 10 is a side elevational view of the structure shown in 9 with parts broken away in the cross section. 1

, Referring, now in detail to the drawing, there is shown in Fig. l a knee joint it comprising the upper end of the tibia H, and the lever end of the, femur l2.. InFig, 1 the lower end of the femur is shown to have a T-fractureincluding,

a fracture area 53 above the femoral condyles and a fracture area Mi extending from the frac ture area 13 betweenthe external and internal condyles J6 and H. In the drawing the fibula I8 is also shown.

In accordance with the present invention,

means is provided to treatthe fracture v I3, 14..

To this end, there isprovided ablade plate or device 29 comprising a blade portion 2! and a plate portion 22 extending therefrom and inte-j grally formed therewith. The device 29 may be made of vitalium, which will create no galvanic.

or edge 24 of the blade 2| is rather thin and its front end is also rounded, as shown in the draw- The plate 22 is transversely curved, that is, its inner surface is concave. Said plate forms an acute angle with the blade 2|. The angle between blade 2| and plate 22 is between 75 and 85", preferably about 80. Said plate is formed with a plurality of longitudinally spaced staggered externally countersunk openings 26. The bottom opening may be centrally located between the side edges of the plate, whereas the upper and lower openings are located on opposite sides of the center. The axis of each opening is preferably radia1 with respect to the curvature of the plate at each opening so that the axes of the three openings are in different directions. Extending through the openings 26 are screws 21, which plate 22 is a thickened lip or heel 29, which may be hammered for driving the blade 2| into the bone. To facilitate application of the device 20, the external condyle l6 may be formed with two spaced drilled holes, and the cortex chiselled therebetween to form a slot in the external cond y1e into which the blade may be driven more easily through the spongy bone. It will be noted that the blade 22 has a transverse curvature to fit th tapered portion of the femur just above the condyles, at the lower end of the femur. Also the angle of the blade 22 is such that it will contact the outer surface of the femur when the blade 2| is'in substantially a horizontal position. In other words, the acute angle of the blade 22 substantially follows the acute angle of the outer surface of the femur above the condyles. The staggered holes give a better hold preventing rocking motion or back pull. v

The length of the blade 2| is preferably about 2 /2 from the front tip thereof to the rear lip or hammer heel 29, so that the blade will not pass entirely through the condyles. preferably of somewhat shorter length than the blade.

In Figs/3 and 4', there is shown the device 20 1 applied for treatment of a T-fracture at the upper end of the tibia. Thus, the T-fracture comprises a horizontal fracture area and a fracture area 3| extending from the fracture area 30' upwardly between the tuberosities 32 and 33 of the tibia. The blade 2| is driven through the tuberosities whereas the plate 22 extends downwardly therefrom and contacts the outer surface of the tibia below its upper end. The device 20 in this use is also held in place by the screws 21.

InF'ig. 3 there is shown a front view of the applied device and in Fig. 4 there is shown a rear view of the applied device. Here likewise, the acuteangle between the plate 22 and the blade 2| is" such as'to conform substantially to the angle of the bone structure at the upper end of the tibia. To aid in driving the blade 2| into the bone, a hammer may be used for striking against the li 29.

In Fig. 8,.there is shown a device- 2% embodying the invention similar to the device 20 with the exception that there is substituted for the flat blade 2|, a blade 2|a having upwardly and outwardly inclined side flanges 40, extending from a flat central bottom wall portion 4|. Member The screws are 4 2 Ia is likewise preferably tapered thin toward its front end.

In Figs. 9 and 10 there is shown a device 201) similar to the device 20a, with the exception that instead of blade 2 la there is provided a blade 2|b having a central flat wall portion 42 and downwardly and outwardly inclined sid flanges 43 extending therefrom.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which the several objects of this invention are achieved and which is well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use. v

As various possible embodiments might be made of the above invention, and as various changes might be made in the embodiment above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein set" forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not ina limiting sense- Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A- device for treating fractures comprising a member made of asingle piece of metal and comprising a blade portion and a plate portion extending at an angle of between and 85 to the blade portion and formed with .a plurality of openings, said plate portion being of transverse curved cross-section being concave at its inner surface, and said device being formed with a heel at the junction of the blade and plate portions extendingin a plane of the blade andbeyond said junction, said blade portion decreasing in thickness toward its outer end. V f

2. A device for treating fractures comprising a member'made of a single piece of metal and comprising a I blade portion and a plate portion extending at an angle of between 75 and. 85'? to the blade portion and formed with a plurality of openings, said plate portion being of trans- I verse curved cross-section being concave at its inner surface, and said device being'formed with a heel at the; junction of'the blade and plate per} tions extending in a plane of theblade and beyond said junction, said blade being formed with longitudinallyextending inclined flanges. f V 3. A device for treating fractures comprising a member made of a single piece of metal andjconiprising a blade portion and a plate portion extending at substantially to the blade portion and formed with a plurality of openings, said plate portion being of transverse curvedcrosssection being concave at its inner surface, and said device being formed with'a heel at the junctionof the blade and plate portions extending. in a plane of the blade and beyond said junction, said blade portion decreasing in thicknesstoward its outer end.

4. A device for treating fractures comprising a member made of a single piece of metal and comprising a blade portion and a plate portion extending at an angle of between '75 and to the blade portion and formed with a plurality of openings, said plate portion being of transverse curved cross-section being concave at its inner surface, and said device being formed with a heel at the junction of the blade and plate portions extending in a plane of theblade and beyond said junction, said blade portion decreasing. in thickness toward its outer end,said' openings being staggered and screws extending through said openings.

5. A device for treating fractures comprising a member made of a single piece of metal and comprising a blade portion and a plateportion extending at substantially 80 to the blade poi tion and formed with a plurality of openings, said plate portion being of transverse curved crosssection being concave at its inner surface, and said device being formed with a heel at the junction of the blade and plate portions extending in a plane of the blade and beyond said junction, said blade portion decreasing in thickness toward its outer end, said openings being staggered and screws extending through said openings, the front edge of said blade portion being rounded.

LOUIS T. WRIGHT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 583,455 Bush June 1, 1897 2,133,859 Hawley Oct. 18, 1938 2,496,126 Haboush Jan. 31, 1950 OTHER REFERENCES Emergency Surgery, page 581. A book published by Blackistons Son and Company, Philadelphia 1931. (Copy in Div. 55.)

Article by W. P. Blount in Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery for April 1943, pp. 319-320.

Article by A. T. Moore in Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery for January 1944, page 54. 

